A Picasso print is stolen from a collector's home. A nineteenth century painting by Monet suffers a gash when being unloaded from its wooden crate. During a coast-to-coast trip, an antique George III table falls on a fragile Giacometti sculpture inside a moving company van. The thin bronze sculpture snaps in two and one of the table legs breaks at the knee. An Andy Warhol silkscreen on canvas portrait is rained on for days when a leak in the apartment ceiling above it causes mischief during the owners' absence. What usually happens next is that a representative from the owners' insurance company arrives to assess damages. This person is usually not informed about paintings or antiques and readily admits this because he or she will be calling in a damage/loss specialist, a professional with the background and experience to assess and determine the loss.
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The above is an excerpt from an article by Elin Lake-Ewald, Ph.D, ASA, RICS, published in Valuation Strategies (WG&L), May/June 2005.
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